Furniture line comprised of a system

ABSTRACT

A furniture line comprised of a system of furniture manufacturing including, but not limited to tables and table-desks that are produced by skilled and unskilled labor with minimal supervision whereby adhesives are utilized in lieu of mechanical fasteners or connectors to produce an unlimited number of furniture models in unlimited variations of sizes, shapes, materials and finishes while maintaining a conceptual basis of relationships between components wherein the underside of every tabletop is configured to nest with the tops of one or more corresponding foam-core pedestals having one or more recessed bases and the perimeters of the recessed areas of the tabletops and the edges of the pedestal tops parallel and abut each other thereby facilitating nesting and wherein every table top may be installed without tools.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Provisional Patent Application60/830,318 filed Jul. 12, 2006 by the present inventor.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

Not Applicable

SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The current art invention identified in the title above relates to afurniture line comprising a system including, but not limited to Tablesand Table-Desks.

2. Prior Art

Assertion

No prior art furniture line has demonstrated means whereby a furnituremanufacturing system has been developed to utilize a method of furnitureconstruction whereby the entire furniture line utilizes adhesives inlieu of mechanical fasteners and connectors and wherein the furnitureline is further comprised of unlimited numbers of models in unlimitedsizes, shapes, materials and finishes while maintaining a conceptualbasis of relationships between components and every top nests on one ormore foam-ore pedestals having one or more recessed bases along one ormore sides of the pedestals and every top may be installed and relocatedwithout the need of tools, all as described in the current art whereinall of the following apply:

Object

The object of the invention is to provide a contemporary furniture linecomprised of a system that simplifies manufacturing by reducing thenumbers and types of tools and machines required to produce finishedproducts, decreases production time and manufacturing costs, therebyincreasing potential profits by providing the following:

-   -   1. adhesives are utilized in lieu of mechanical fasteners and        connectors, thereby increasing strength and reducing        manufacturing time as well as reducing costs of manufacture due        to total full-bed adhesive contact between components;    -   2. tabletops are supported by one or more pedestals in lieu of        table legs or panels, thereby reducing the number of parts,        simplifying assembly, improving the process of production and        reducing time and costs required in the manufacturing of the        products;    -   3. the same basic types of components and features as shown in        the drawings are present in every furniture model in the line        without limiting the number of variations available in sizes,        shapes, materials and finishes, therefore simplifying the        manufacturing, production and assembly processes;    -   4. the underside of each tabletop has one or more recessed areas        and the perimeters of the recessed areas parallel and abut the        edges of the tops of corresponding pedestals, thereby        simplifying and facilitating nesting;    -   5. technical fasteners and connectors are not required to hold        the tabletops in place and said tabletops are removable from one        or more pedestals without use of a tool, thereby simplifying        relocation of the tables and table-desks;    -   6. pedestals are comprised of a foam core with integral recessed        bases along one or more sides of the pedestals and the exterior        surfaces of the foam core pedestals may be comprised of, but not        limited to unfinished, coated, laminated, upholstered or clad        surfacing materials;    -   7. tabletops are nested with the tops of corresponding        pedestals, thereby resisting rotational and horizontal movement        and vertical movement is resisted due to the effect of gravity;        and    -   8. tabletops may be installed in place in the field without the        use of tools, thereby reducing the time and costs associated        with installation.

Advantages

-   -   1. The furniture line is comprised of articles of manufacture        that may be pre-finished components sized, shaped and cut to        order according to the requirements of each furniture model,        said components not necessarily being produced in-house;    -   2. The furniture line provides a method of production whereby        the components are manufactured and assembled utilizing        adhesives in full-bed, total coverage contact between components        in lieu of mechanical fasteners and connectors, thereby        increasing strength in the finished product and reducing the        need of labor intensive hand tools as well as reducing        production time and manufacturing costs;    -   3. The furniture line provides a method of assembly of        components whereby unskilled laborers may be utilized in lieu of        skilled mechanics, thereby reducing costs of manufacture while        simultaneously providing fulltime and part time employment to        persons who might otherwise be unemployed.    -   4. The furniture line provides an unlimited number of product        models in unlimited variations of sizes, shapes, materials and        finishes while utilizing the same conceptual relationships        between components as shown in the drawings, whereby the        tabletops nest on pedestals in such manner that no tools are        required to install or remove the tabletops;    -   5. Every furniture model in the furniture line including, but        not limited to tables and table-desks are comprised of a top and        at least one pedestal that has a foam core with integral        recessed bases along one or more sides of the pedestals;    -   6. The surfaces of each foam pedestal may be unfinished, coated,        laminated, upholstered or clad, thereby providing unlimited        variations within the furniture line;    -   7. Each tabletop, when nested with the top of one or more        corresponding pedestals resists rotational and horizontal        movement and each tabletop resists vertical movement due to the        effect of gravity, thereby holding tabletops in place; and    -   8. Every model in the furniture line may be installed without        the use of tools, thereby reducing time and costs of        installation.

SUMMARY

The current art is a furniture line comprised of a system of manufactureand is further comprised of furniture models including, but not limitedto pre-finished components that may be assembled by unskilled labor withminimal supervision whereby adhesives are utilized in lieu of fastenersand connectors to produce a furniture line that is comprised of anunlimited number of furniture models including, but not limited totables and table-desks in unlimited variations of size, shapes,materials and finishes while maintaining a conceptual basis ofrelationships between components wherein every furniture model top nestson one or more foam-re pedestals with one or more integral recessedbases along the bottom of each pedestal and every top may be installedand removed without the need of tools.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings are for illustrative purposes only and do not in any waylimit the variations of sizes, shapes, materials and finishes utilizedwithin the furniture line or the means, methods and systems ofproduction and manufacture available within the full and broadest scopeof the invention.

FIG. 1 is a section through a single-ply planar tabletop (2) showingrecessed areas (4) in the underside of the top.

FIG. 2 is a section through a laminated double-ply planar tabletop (6)showing recessed areas (8) in the underside of the top.

FIG. 3 is a section through a double-ply tabletop (10) and a foam-corepedestal (12) with a recessed area in the underside of the tabletop (14)and recessed integral bases (16) along one or more sides of thepedestal.

FIG. 4 is an elevation of one side of a table showing a single-plytabletop (18) nested on the top of a pedestal (20) with integralrecessed bases (22) along one or more sides of the pedestal.

FIG. 5 is an elevation of a laminated double-ply tabletop (24) nested onthree foam-core pedestals (26) (28) (30) with recessed integral bases(32) (34) (36) along one or more sides of each pedestal.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Statutory Class

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary—Tenth Edition defines, amongother definitions, ‘furniture’ as “equipment that is necessary, useful,or desirable” and defines, among many other definitions, ‘line’ as “anarrangement of operations in manufacturing” and “merchandise or servicesof the same general class”, therefore suggesting that furniture is anarticle of manufacture; however ‘manufacture’ is a process (method).

Further, ‘Webster’ defines ‘composition’ as a “product of mixing orcombining various elements or ingredients”, “an intellectual creation”and “the operation of forming a composite function”; all of which appearto have merit relative to this application.

Utility

As noted above, furniture is “equipment that is necessary, useful, ordesirable”.

Novelty

The current art is comprised of a system of manufacture that provides amethod of construction and production whereby all components aremanufactured and assembled utilizing adhesives in full-bed, totalcoverage contact between components in lieu of any mechanical fastenersor connectors, thereby increasing product physical strength and speedingthe process of manufacture and assembly; no other furniture line iscomprised of the above stated system.

Additionally, every furniture model in the furniture line is comprisedof a top that nests on at least one pedestal that has a foam core withintegral recessed bases along one or more sides of the pedestal(s),thereby increasing product physical strength and eliminating internalframing as well as racking normally associated with furniture;

The furniture line also provides means whereby an unlimited number ofproduct models in unlimited variations of sizes, shapes, materials andfinishes utilize the same conceptual relationships between components asshown in the drawings, thereby providing uniformity and consistencywithin the furniture line;

The underside of each tabletop has one or more recessed areas that nestwith the tops of corresponding pedestals and the perimeters of therecessed areas of the tops are parallel to the top edges ofcorresponding pedestals, thereby restricting horizontal and rotationalmovement and tabletops and table-desk tops are removable from one ormore pedestals without use of a tool, thereby simplifying installationand relocation of the tables.

Un-Obviousness

In order for the current art to be obvious, a person would have to imagea furniture line of tables and table-desks that would utilize full-bedtotal-coverage adhesives in lieu of mechanical fasteners or connectorscoupled with table tops that have recessed areas on the underside ofsaid tops that would nest only on one or more form-core pedestals havingone or more recessed bases and that have table tops that may beinstalled and removed without the use of a tool and that would providemeans whereby each and every model in the furniture line would utilizethe same conceptual relationships between components without limitingthe number of product models or the number of variations of sizes,shapes, forms, materials and finishes that would be available to beutilized within the furniture line.

Furthermore, if obvious, all of the above in combination as defined anddelineated in this non-provisional patent application would now be priorart.

Unexpected Results

Utilization of adhesives in lieu of mechanical fasteners and connectersincreases speed of manufacture and assembly and decreases the use ofhand tools as expected; however, reduction in costs of hand tools, theirrepair and reduced electrical power costs are unexpected advantages;

Utilization of unskilled labor and minimized supervision were notexpected to provide full-time and part-time employment for persons thatmight otherwise be unemployed;

Foam-core pedestals with recessed integral bases were expected toeliminate steps that are normal to the manufacture of conventionalpedestals and recessed bases; however, improving the strength of thepedestals and bases while simultaneously speeding fabrication, thusreducing manufacturing costs were unexpected;

Foam-core pedestals with recessed bases combined with laminated surfacematerials set with full-bed total-coverage adhesives provides numerousmanufacturing advantages; however, the solution of the long knownproblem of racking normally associated with conventional furniture wasnot to be expected;

Recessed areas in the underside of tops provide means and advantage,whereby tops and pedestals may be installed without the use of tools;however, automatic alignment of tops with multiple pedestals wasunexpected.

Omission of Elements

The current art provides omission of not less than eight independentelements normal to the manufacture of furniture as listed below:

-   -   1. Elimination of table legs as support for tabletops;    -   2. Elimination of panels as support for tabletops;    -   3. Elimination of mechanical fasteners and connectors;    -   4. Elimination of internal framework in pedestals and bases;    -   5. Elimination of hand tools of assembly;    -   6. Elimination of hand tools of installation;    -   7. Elimination of racking that is normal to prior art furniture;        and    -   8. Elimination of the need to hold tops in place by mechanical        means.

Simplification and Usefulness

The current art simplifies numerous aspects of the construction offurniture within the furniture line including, but not limited to:

-   -   1. Simplification of manufacturing and assembly by utilization        of adhesives in lieu of fasteners and connectors;    -   2. Simplification by reduction of the number of parts by        utilization of foam-core pedestals with recessed bases;    -   3. Simplification of installation by nesting tops upon pedestals        by utilizing recesses located in the underside of tabletops; and    -   4. Simplification of processes by reduction in the use of hand        tools in manufacturing, assembly and installation.

Physical Structure

Tables and table-desks are physically static, whereof they have nomoving parts and historically the tops are physically secured to legs,panels and pedestals with mechanical fasteners and connecters as meansof support.

The furniture described in the current art is comprised of tabletopsthat are supported only by foam-core pedestals with one or more recessedintegral bases.

Additionally, no table tops within the current art furniture linerequires mechanical fasteners or connectors.

Assembly and Production

Tabletops are homogenous or otherwise planar single or multi-layeredcomponents that are sized, shaped and finished in-house or otherwise tomeet the requirements of each furniture model within the furniture lineand they are known, used and readily available all over the world,therefore no further description as to construction of said tabletops isnecessary to the prosecution of this patent application.

Pedestals utilized within the current art furniture line are comprisedof a foam core cut, sized and shaped in-house or otherwise by a hot-wiredevice known, utilized and readily available all over the world and thatis operated by persons “having ordinary skill in the art to which saidsubject matter pertains”.

Said pedestals may receive single or multiple laminated surfacingmaterials applied with adhesives by skilled or unskilled labor on one ormore of the pedestal's foam surfaces for the purpose of increasing thestrength of the pedestal and meeting the requirements of the furnituremodel that is being constructed.

Summarily, it should be noted that the processes of assemble andproduction (manufacture) utilized within the current art furniture lineare simplistic when compared with prior art and are superior to priorart furniture manufacture.

Conclusion

The current art invention is a furniture line developed as:

-   -   1. A System, whereby a conceptual basis is ascribed to and        maintained for the purpose of providing uniformity, consistency        and the ability of producing a furniture line wherein furniture        models including, but not limited to tables and table-desks are        of higher quality and are manufactured more efficiently and at        less cost than those produced by prior art;    -   2. A process, whereby unnecessary elements of prior art are        eliminated and manufacture is operationally more efficient and        simplified as compared to prior art; and    -   3. A means, whereby the current art provides a significant        change in components that hold and secure items of manufacture        together, thereby providing greater strength and benefits than        those provided by prior art

Preferred Embodiment

The preferred embodiment is the current art furniture line defined anddescribed herein being comprised of a system of manufacture, production,assembly and installation of furniture wherein all furniture modelsincluding, but not limited to Tables and Table-desks utilize adhesivesin lieu of fasteners and connectors to produce an unlimited number offurniture models in unlimited variations of sizes, shapes, materials andfinishes while maintaining a conceptual basis of relationships betweencomponents, wherein every furniture model top nests on one or morefoam-core pedestals with one or more integral recessed bases, every topextends beyond the perimeter of the pedestal(s) and every top may beinstalled or relocated without the need of tools.

Additional Embodiment

An additional embodiment is the furniture line described above includingfurniture casework, but not limited to Desks, Pedestals, Occasional andCoffee Tables, Credenzas, File Cabinets and Storage Cabinets, whereineach such furniture model utilizes adhesives in lieu of fasteners andconnectors to produce casework shells in an unlimited number offurniture models and in unlimited variations of sizes, shapes, forms,materials and finishes while maintaining a conceptual basis ofrelationships between components, wherein every furniture model topnests on a foam-core pedestal or casework shell with one or moreintegral recessed bases, every top edge is flush with the perimeter edgeof the pedestal or shell and every top is laminated to the top of thepedestal or shell.

Additional Embodiment

An additional embodiment is the furniture line described aboveincluding, but not limited to free-standing pedestals, wherein each suchfurniture model utilizes adhesives in lieu of fasteners and connectorsto produce an unlimited number of furniture models in unlimitedvariations of sizes, shapes, materials and finishes while maintaining aconceptual basis of relationships between components, wherein everyfurniture model top nests on a foam-core pedestal with one or moreintegral recessed bases, every top edge is flush with the perimeter edgeof the pedestal and every top is laminated to the top of the pedestal.

More embodiments are probable as time presents additional possibilities.

1-8. (canceled)
 9. A furniture line comprising a system of manufactureand production that utilizes adhesives in lieu of mechanical fastenersand connectors, said adhesives also securing planar components togetherin the construction of laminated tabletops and laminated surfacematerials to pre-cured foam-core pedestals; said tabletops comprisingsingle or more planar components having recessed areas let into theunderside of each tabletop to facilitate nesting of the tabletops oncorresponding pedestals without the use of tools; said pedestals beingin lieu of table legs and panel legs; pre-cured foam-cores being in lieuof interior framework and the pedestals comprising pre-cured foam-coreshaving one or more integral recessed pre-cured foam-core bases along thebottom side or sides of each pedestal.
 10. The furniture line accordingto claim 1 further comprising articles of furniture inclusive of tablesand table desks.
 11. The furniture line according to claim 1 furthercomprising tabletops of two or more planar components that are laminatedtogether with adhesives.
 12. The furniture line according to claim 1further comprising tabletops having one or more recessed areas on theunderside of said tabletops and said recessed areas being configured tonest with the tops of corresponding pedestals, whereby the perimeters ofthe recessed areas of the tabletops and the top edges of correspondingpedestals parallel and abut each other, thereby facilitating nesting.13. The furniture line according to claim 1 further comprising full-bedadhesive coverage in lieu of mechanical fasteners and connectors. 14.The furniture line according to claim 1 further comprising pre-curedfoam-core pedestals with integral recessed bases along one or more sidesof each pedestal.
 15. The furniture line according to claim one furthercomprising exterior surface materials that are adhesively applied to thesurfaces of pre-cured foam-core pedestals.
 16. The furniture lineaccording to claim 1 further comprising tabletops that nest with tops ofcorresponding pedestals in such manner that rotational and horizontalmovement is restricted and each table resists vertical movement due tothe effect of gravity, thereby holding said tabletops in place withoututilizing adhesives or mechanical fasteners or connectors.